1. Asking the Right Question. ... As you prepare to compete in the digital future, the question is not, "How you can adapt the Internet to our business?" The question should be, "How can you adapt your business model to take best advantage of the Net?" That's what Michael Russer writes in his excellent White Paper, "Connected 2001: The Transformation of the Residential Real Estate Industry," published by Intel Corporation. (Call 800-548-4725, Order Number: 243862-001.) ... Yep, it's residential, but VERY applicable to the commercial real estate industry.

I thought of this quote as I read Wednesday's news of Realty Information Group's announcement of an agreement to acquire LeaseTrend. The combined operations will cover 36 of the nation's largest markets and track over 150,000 buildings and 76,000 tenants. According to Andy Florance CEO of RIG, this acquisition will bring "true standardized national coverage to the commercial real estate industry." So, if that's true, let's continue the thought.

I presume that RIG and LeaseTrend have unique identifiers for tracking properties and tenants. Could these numbers become a standard like Dunn & Bradstreet's D-U-N-S numbers? If so, could large portfolio owners and service providers begin to use these numbers for their own tracking purposes? Could they then synchronize databases of space available and tenants with RIG--just like Palm Pilots synchronize business contact information? And wouldn't corporations want to upload this lease expiration data for their 10ks?

This is not an original argument, and it may be a tenuous proposition today. After all, there are other strong information providers competing in the same space. And there are a host of technological issues. But it's not crazy.

Although the digital economy has had little impact on the actual delivery of commercial real estate services so far, can anybody doubt that it's coming? So start figuring out how you can change your firm--today. Remember, it's all about integrating, partnering and sharing to maximize the value of your service. And that's not a contradiction in the wired economy! (See Paragraph 2 below.)

2. Web Success--ARES Links to LoopNet. ... Here's a great example of integrating services to maximize customer value. ... ARES for ACT 4.0, the contact management program, now can automatically match prospective buyers and lessees with LoopNet's current inventory of listings. You enter your property requirements in ARES and these are cross-referenced with LoopNet's database via the web. Search results are displayed within a standard browser window in ARES. So your ARES desktop application is better connected to the Internet and LoopNet's web site is better connected to your desktop. "Increasing broker productivity is what ARES is all about," according to Michael Griffin of the ARES Development Group. ... You can also launch PikeNet directly from ARES. (I like that!) ... Repeating from Paragraph 1 above: It's all about integrating, partnering and sharing to maximize your value. ... Do you have a Web Success story? Send e-mail to Peter Pike . ... For recent stories use the following URL:

http://www.pikenet.com/pike?func=WebSuccess09

3. Dispatch Goal--6,000 Subscribers by Year-End! ... This Dispatch will be sent to 5,883 subscribers, and I'm hoping to reach the 6,000 mark by year-end. So I need just over 100 more in the next two weeks. Please encourage your colleagues to sign up! Use the URL below. ... This week you received a PikeNet Express on Tuesday. That seemed to be a little confusing. So starting next week, I'll rename the Express, the "Dispatch" and publish two issues of the Dispatch each week. The first issue of the week will emphasize the PikeNet Knowledge Base, Web Success stories and interesting Message Board posts. The second will emphasize more commentary on trends in the industry.

http://www.pikenet.com/pike?func=registerDispatch

4. Lost Your Password? ... It's Easy to Find. ... You can get your password automatically e-mailed to you instantly. This week I posted step-by-step instructions for getting passwords in the Web Related section of the Knowledge Base. You'll see two password questions (to edit your User Profile or post an item on the Message Boards) toward the top of the list. Use the link to the PikeNet Knowledge Base at the top of the PikeNet home page or the following URL:

http://www.pikenet.com/pike?func=webrelated

5. PikeNet 99 Web Site Updated. ... You'll find the latest speaker and registration information for PikeNet 99 web site--Apr 29-30/May 1, in NYC. And check out the testimonials from PikeNet 98 at:

http://www.pikenet.com/pikenet99/testimonials98.html

6. Sponsor. ... "Coldwell Banker Commercial offers a full spectrum of services for owners, investors and users of commercial space, from market research and strategic planning to implementation to ongoing advisory services. Our expertise covers all property types: office, industrial, apartment, hotel, retail properties and land. Our services include investment advisory, property and asset management and more! For more information, please visit our web site at www.commercial.coldwellbanker.com or call 800-222-2162."

--Peter Pike